Final Revised Essay

DERISSE 3

GRACIA

Professor Crystal Ellwood

WR1020

20 September 2020

Are We in a Race Against the Machine?

There is no denying the fact that technology has improved human life with great measures. Now we live in extremely advanced apartments and homes with technology supporting life in them. From the cooking of food to washing clothes, from transportation to telecommunication; everything is done through machines and it should be admitted that lives have improved a lot due to them. This like every coin has two sides to it, this success story also had two sides where machines which are the product of technology, have made us lazy and we are becoming too dependent on them. That is why it is not wrong to say that humans are constantly in a race against machines.

When there were no machines, humans had to put in extra effort to get their work done. the working hours were long and hard work or labor was double and exhausting. Similarly, other daily life chores like maintaining the lawn, ironing of the clothes, cooking, etc. were very tough. Moreover, activities like going from one place to another were difficult and time-consuming while telecommunication was a very lengthy process. But interaction among humans was very alive and deliberate with maximum emotions and positivity involved. With the emergence of machines, where humans have lost hardships and long exhausting hours of extra labor, the sense of liveness and compassion is lost as well. These reasons and many others have forced the people to realize what they are losing and if they did not look into this matter seriously, then it might become too late for them. Hence, the war against the machines does exist.

I don’t say that inclusion of machines in our lives has an only negative impact because this would not be true. Everything has become way too easy to reality and this is what is dangerous of us. Our academic courses are now present online and we can attend class online, it is due to advancement and machines like laptops, computers, and the internet. But the impact that the classroom had gets lost in the cyber world. For instance, teachers would come up with intellectual ideas or plans to engage everyone in the activities that are used to increase the learning process. But when everything is online, you cannot force anyone. For this reason, people are ruling against machines and trying to highlight the negative impact of them.

I believe that advancement in technology has taken our freedom from us. We are no longer free from machinery as we are always engaged in them. Like our smartphones; we are using them all the time that we skip on many important things that are happening around us. “Smartphone aside, others continue to worry about technology in all of its form, and how it can negatively impact our brain and bodies” (Graf, Birkenstein, & Durst 420 – 423). The usage of machinery is so much that family times are getting lost, traditions and rituals are getting compromised and holidays are no more source of excitement and happiness because our lives have become tangled in an electronic web that controls us and our minds. Sadly, our emotions are becoming distant and cold as well.

The side effects of machinery in our lives are not only limited to the physical aspect like everyday work or physical assets but the damage is going beyond that. It means that mentally we are getting affected badly by the involvement of machines in our lives. The constant dependence on machines has made us mentally handicapped as we cannot think outside the box and keeps revolving around our smart devices, electronic cars, and homes. Over time, it has been seen that very little people are aware of how life used to be back in the early 21st century or how our forefathers worked hard and earned their livelihood through incredible hardships.

If youngsters of today's time are explained how people used to live back in the early days of the 21st century when dependence on machines was near to zero, they are simply shocked. They cannot believe how they survived the time without their cellphones or laptops or quick travels and travel plans to the world. But the truth is that our ancestors not only lived with health than us but also survived with more happiness, maturity, and little mental issues. Yes, the machines are making us mental as we are giving up our life just so we can become a machine where there is no space for emotions, reliance, compassion, and respect for others.

Our health is deteriorating with every passing minute because we are getting away from healthy activities as our leisure time includes gaming and driving to places where we will just sit, watch movies or simply eat and gossip about others. The honesty of feelings and reality is somewhere so behind that we now believe what we see through these machines. It is high time that we should step forward and minimize the input of machines in our lives. I particularly fear the machines because we are giving them the power to think through Artificial Intelligence. Just imagine, who would have thought that we, humans, will get so advanced in technology that we will develop software for computers so they can think like humans. It's only a matter of time that machines would practically come forward and control everything according to their wills.

This is not some fictional theory or ideology but genuine fear because we are leaving everything from what, when to how to do things in the hands of machines, and in between this process, we are leaving behind our culture, emotions, traditions, and everything that makes us human. That is why people are arguing against the machines and waking people up to reality. Hence, the war is on and I am not denying that there is a huge number of people who are in favor of machines and believe that humans are more advanced and in control of their situation but I fear that they are completely blinded by the bright but artificial present that is only threatening their future.

Cite

"Norton Ebooks". Digital.Wwnorton.Com, 2020, https://digital.wwnorton.com/30533. Accessed 21 Sept 2020.